Corn-planter.



W. S. GRAHAM.

CORN PLANTEH. (Appncfeion 'mea sept. 2e. 1901.)

Patented Apr.- 8, |1902.

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m. 697,402. Y Patented Apr. a, |902. w. s. GRAHAM. CORN PLA-"TER,

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Patented Apr. |902. w. s. GRAHAM.

CORN PLANTEB (Application led Sept. 26, 1901.) y

3 Sheets-#Sheet 3.

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'ilimlill-ENUM UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

WILLIAM S. GRAHAM, CF CANTON, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TO PARLIN & OREN- DORFF COMPANY, OF CANTON, ILLINOIS, A CORPORATION OF ILLINOIS.

CORN-PLANNER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 697,402, dated April 8; 1902.

Application iiledSeptemher 26, 1901. Serial No. 76,662. (No model.)

To all who-m, it may concern:

Be it known that I, WILLIAM S. GRAHAM, of Canton, in thecounty of Fulton and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Check-Row Corn-Planters, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to means for dropping the seed so as to accommodate the backward rock of the check-row fork and the forward rotation of the drill-chain, and to improved check-row mechanism.

The invention is exemplified in the structures hereinafter described, and it is defined in the appended claims. l

Inv the drawings forming part of this specication, Figure l is a vertical section from front to back through a planter-frame, illustrating the means used to raise and lower the front frame of the planter. Fig. 2 is a detail plan showing the means employed to drop the corn when the dropping-shaft is rocked backward by the check-row lever or rotated forward by the drill-chain. Fig. 3 is a detail of the clutch-shifting and chain-tightening vmechanism of the drill, showing the conditions that exist when runners are in planting position. Fig. 4 is the same as Fig. 3, except that in Fig. 4 the runners are shown raised and the clutch shifted. Fig. 5 is a section through the clutch mechanism of the drill. Fig. 6 is a plan of the clutch. Fig. 7 is a detail of the check-row movement, the pawls and arm thereof being shown in side elevation and the lantern-wheel in section. In this figure the parts are at rest preparatory to the beginning of an operation. Fig. 8 is a detail of the check-row mechanism, showing an operative movement of the check row pawl partly completed. Fig. 9 shows an operative movement of the check-row pawl entirely completed and the lantern-wheel locked against further motion. Fig. lO shows how the checkrow pawl is held out of contact with the lantern-wheel when the planter is used as a drill. Fig. ll is a plan of the check-row movement.

A side bar of the rear or wheel frame of the planter is shown at l.

At 2 is shown the axle-'shaft of the rear frame of the planter, and a planter-wheel is represented in broken lines at 3.

The cross-bars of the front or runner frame of the planter are shown at 6 and 7. The shaft that drives the seed-plates of the hoppers. is shown at 4, and the check-row shaft is shown at 5.

The improved means for raising and lowering the front frame consists of elements as follows: A bracket 25 is attached to a crossbar 24 of the frame, at the center thereof, and it has a notched sector25, A rock-arm 28 is pivotally connected with bracket 25 concentric with the notched sector. One of its ends extends in front of the pivot and is provided with a foot-rest 3l, while its other end extends rearward and is provided with a foot-rest 30. An extension-spring 35 connects with the rearward extension of the rock-arm and with the bracket 25 below the pivot of the rock-arm. A rod 33 is pivotally connected with the forward end of the rock-arm', and it extends downward through a bracket 32, which extends rearward from the end of the tongue 23. Therod has a limited amount of play in the bracket 32, being restrained by a nut or pin on its lower end and by a compression-spring 34, encircling the rod between the bracket and the rockarm. A lock-lever 29 extends upward from the rock-arm 28 and connects rigidly therewith. Abrace 26 for seat 27 extends obliquely upward and backward from the rear end of bracket 25. The front frame is lifted through rod 33 and depressed through spring 34.. The spring 35 helps to lift the front frame, and its tension may be regulated. The lever 29 may be used to rock the arm 2S either by itself or in conjunction with leg-pressure applied to the foot-rests, and it may also be used to lock the front frame ineither a lowered or raised position. When the lock-bolt of lever 29 is locked out of engagement with 'the notches of the sector, the runner-frame may be controlled by leg-pressure applied through the footrests,downward pressure being transmitted through foot-rest 3l and upward lift being applied through footrest 30. The

spring 35 aids this operation by sustaining n part of the weight of the front frame.

g In Fig. 2 the bottom .of a seedbox is shown at 36. The seed-plate thereof is shown at 37. A1138 is shown a cut-off for the seed-plate, and at 39 is shown a second cut-off presented in a direction opposed to the direction in wheel.

which cut-oit 3S is presented. The shaft4 is geared to the seed-plate in the customary manner, and it is provided with a sprocket-wheel 10 and a ratchet-wheel 44. A chain 9 connects .wheel 10 with a sprocket-wheel on the axle-shaft of the rear frame of the planter when the planter' is used as a drill, and a pawl 41 on a check-row shaft 5 imparts motion t0 the shaft 4 through ratchet-wheel 44 when the planter is used to plant in check-rows. The chain 9 drives the shaft forward with a continuous rotary motion and turns the seedplate in a direction to bring cut-oit 39 into action. The check-row fork 40a is thrown backward by the knots on a check-row wire, and the pawl 41 imparts intermittent rotary motion to the shaft 4 through the ratchet- The effect of the check-row mechanism on shaft-L is to rotate the shaft backward, reverse the motion of the seed-plate, and bring cut-01138 into operation. In this instance the ratchet-wheel is constructed in a peculiar manner; but it is obvious that the essential requirement is that the intermittent rock of the check row shaft shall be transmitted through a pawl and ratchet to the shaft/t and be converted therein into intermittent rotary motion. This feature of the invention permits the chain and the check-row shaft to each transmit its natural motion to the seedplate without complicated intervening mechanism and without any shifting or adjustment of parts when one means for driving the planting mechanism is substituted for the other. When the chain is used, the pawl is thrown out of contact with the ratchet-wheel. (Seelig. 10.) Vhen the check-row shaft is used, the chain is disconnected, and that is all thereis about the conversion of the planter from a drill to a check-rower, and the reverse.

When the planter' is used to drill corn, the drilling mechanism is thrown out of operation whenever the runners are raised, so that the seed will not be wasted in turning the planter around or in traveling from one place to another. When the :front frame is raised, the distance between the axle-shaft of the rear frame and the drill-shaft of the front frame is lessened somewhat and the chain used to transmit motion to the drill-shaft becomes so slack that it is liable to run oit its sprocket-wheels unless steps are taken to prevent this result. The means employed by me to throw the drilling mechanism out of operation when the front frame is raised and to take up the slack of the chain resulting from such raising of the front frame is illustrated in Figs. 3, 4, 5, and 6 of the drawings and is as follows: A sleeve, as 20, is attached to the axle-shaft 2 of the rear frame in position to extend through the bracket 21 of the rear frame and form a bearing therein, and the inner end of the sleeve has ratchetnotches, as shown in Fig. 5. The sprocketwheel S is mounted loosely on the axle-shaft. It has ratchet-teeth on its hub adapted to engage the ratchet-notches of sleeve 20, and it is normally held in engagement with the sleeve by means of a spring, as 22. (Shown in Figs. 5 and 6.) The bearing-sleeve of bracket 21 has inclined teeth on its inner end, and it is somewhat shorterthan the sleeve 20,for which it forms abearing. The hub of the sprocketwheel is equal in diameter to the sleeve 20, and a collar 16 is mounted on the extended end of the sleeve 2O and upon the hub of the sprocket-wheel. The collar has inclined recesses in which the inclined teeth of bracket 21 rest when the wheel is in clutch with sleeve 20, and the wheel is moved lengthwise of the shaft 2 against the tension of the spring 22, so as to force the wheel out of clutch with the sleeve whenever the collar is turned so as to bring the ends of its teeth into contact with the ends of the teeth of the bracket 2l. A bracket 11 is attached to a side bar 1 of the rear frame of the planter near the rear bar7 of the front frame. An arm 12 is pivotally attached to the bracket 11. An end 13 of the arm 12 extends above the cross-bar 7. A downward extension 14 of the arm provides apivotal bearing for rod 15, and the rod connects pivotally with a lug on the clutch-breaking collar 1G. An arm 17 is pivotally connected with the bracket 11, is extended backward therefrom, and is provided with an idler 18, which rests on the chain 9. A spring 19 connects with arm 12 and with arm 17 below the pivotsof each, and its tension exerts a downward pull on both arms. The rear frame of the planter connects pivotally with the front cross-bar G of the front frame, and when the front frame is raised, as shown in Fig. 4, the cross-bar 7 approaches the rear frame, raises the extension 13 of arm 12, and by pulling backward on extension 14E rocks the colla-r 1G and forces the half-clutch 1G of wheel 8 out of engagement with the collar 20. At the same time the spring 19 is made topull downward on arm 17 with increased force andthe idler 18 takes up the slack of the chain caused by raising the front frame. lVhen the front frame is lowered, the chain is tightened, the idler-arm is raised somewhat with reference to its pivot, and the spring 19 exerts suilicient tension on arm 12 to force the collar 16 into its original position. The spring 19 forms an elastic link between the idler-arm and the clutch-shiftingarm,and the action of the arms is of a nature to minimize the importance of the elasticity of the spring. Vhen the arm 12 is raised, it pulls downward on arm 17, and when arm 17 is raised by the tightening of the chain it tends to pull arm 12 downward and shift the clutch-breaking collar. The spring -link is useful, however, in that it makes nice adjustment needless, applies force yieldingly, and augmente the action of the idler-arm on the clutch-breaking arm.

The mechanism used to transmit motion from the check-row shaft to the seed-dropping shaft is exemplied in Figs. 7, 8, 9, 10, and 11 of the drawings, and it comprises the fol- IIO 47 extends back of the ratchet-wheel and a. Abrake-arm or stop-pawl 48 has a sleeve 48p,v The brake-arm has that journals on pin 47.' a V-shaped extension 49, that rests between two pins of the ratchet-Wheelwhen thewheel is at rest and by bearing against such pins tends to impede motion ofthe wheel in either direction. A spring 50 connects with an ex-v tension 52 of rock-arm 40 and also connects through a link-rod 5l with the upper end of the brake-arm off the center thereof. The spring tends to retract the checkrow shaft after an operative motion thereof,'and it also applies slight pressure to the brake arm( The notches 46 are between the pins 45 when the circumference of the wheel is considered, and when the mechanism is at rest thepius 43` of the pawl lie in notchesof the disks, while the rod-engaging tooth 41a is entirely out of contact of the rod that it is fto engage. As. the check-row shaft is rocked backward by a check-row knot or otherwise the wheel is put in motion by the pins 43 and carried to about the position shown in Fig. 8, after which the tooth 4l engages a rod and completes the partial rotation of the wheel. When the stroke of the pawl is completed, the tooth 4l is extended below a rod to keep. the pawl from rising and another rod strikes the under surface of the pawl, as shown in Fig. 9, and arrests the rotation of 4the shaft. Subsequently the spring 50 carries the check-row shaft back to its originalposition preparatory to a repetition of the operation, and during such backward motion of thepawl the brakearm holds the wheel against turningwith the pawl. After'the pawl is at rest the brakearm holds the Wheel against accidental turning.

forkedv lever 'is sudden and somewhat severe and the tendency is to give theintermittentlyrotating shaft an impulse that will cause it to travelaway fromthe pawl and escape the locking action thereof. If, for instance, the force of the check-row knot were transmitted to a rod of the wheel through tooth 4l of the pawl, the wheel might be` driven away from the pawl by the sudden impulse andthe pawl might not catchup in time for the tooth to extend under one rod when the iodmextfollowing struck the under surface of the pawl.

An arm.

The pawl has ank In that case the shaft would x be carried too I far and inaccurate dropping would result. When, however, the first impactof the-knot isimparted to the. wheel through the pins 43 actingin slotsv 46, the wheel must travel with the pawl for about one-half the stroke or until the pins'ride-outvof the slots, as'shown in Fig. 8, `and .by that .time the wheel and the pawl are moving in unison, the eect-of the stroke-likeinitial action has subsided,and the pawl completes the movement by continued pressure against one of ythe-rods.

The check-row shaft extends parallel with Across-bar 6 of the front frame not far therefrom, andwhen the planter is in use as a drill the pawl is turned upward, as shown in Fig. 10, with the extension 42 bearing against the cross-bar and holding thev pawlout of contact with the ratchet-wheel.

I claim-' l. In a corn-planter, the combination with a seedbox and a seed-wheel therefor, of a pair of cut-offs presented in oppositedirections;

whereby the seed-wheel may be driveniinone directionvto plant in check-rows and in the contrary direction to drill the seed.

2. In a planter, the combination of a shaft to drive the dropping mechanism, a ratchet-V wheel for the shaft comprising a notched-disk having laterally-extended'pins, and a driveto drive thedropping mechanism, a lantern;

Wheel ou theshaft the end-disks whereof are notched in their peripheries, a-rock-shaft,l an arm on the rock-shaft and a pawl on the arm having laterally-extended pins to engage thev notches of the disks-and also -having an undercut tooth to engage the rods of the lantern-wheel.

.95 pawl for the ratchet-wheel having a sidewise- 4. In a plantel', the combination of a shaft Y to' drive the dropping mechanism, a lanternwheel on the shaft, a rock-arm, a pawlon the rock-arm to drive the lantern-wheel, a brakeyarm bearing against the rods of y thelanternwheel and a spring connecting an extension f Yof the brake-arm with an extension'of the A y Y while holding the brake-armto its work. The impact of a check-row knot against the g 5. In a planter,-theicombinationwith a fixed partoffthe planter-frame, of arockvratChet-wheelson a drive-shaft andjwith a arm and apawl on the rock-arm having an 'Y 

